1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a front opening unified pod (FOUP) opener used to open and close a lid (a FOUP door) of a semiconductor wafer transporting container (a FOUP) employed in a semiconductor manufacturing device or the like, and an operating method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a semiconductor manufacturing device, a transportation subject semiconductor wafer (to be referred to simply as a wafer hereafter) is typically transported automatically while housed in a transporting container known as a FOUP, a cassette, or similar. In this type of device, mechanisms and functions for preventing the semiconductor wafer from falling out of the container during transportation are under investigation.
For example, an overhead traveling vehicle such as the following has been proposed as a device for preventing a semiconductor wafer from falling (see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2008-100635).
The overhead traveling vehicle travels along a travel rail, and includes an elevation unit that raises and lowers a container serving as a transported article while holding the container, and a fall prevention member that prevents a lid of the held container from falling. The fall prevention member includes an upper portion frame and a lower portion frame, wherein the lower portion frame is disposed to be upwardly mobile relative to the upper portion frame. Further, a light emitting terminal or a light receiving terminal of a photoelectric sensor is provided on the lower portion frame. With this constitution, an abnormality in the lid is detected when the container is raised, and as a result, the lid is prevented from falling.